Of Lazy Days and Nightmares
by Tiniwiel
Summary: Rose just wanted to sleep in. Rose/Nine, no real spoilers. My first Doctor Who fic ever!


This is my very first Doctor Who fic, so please be gentle! I wrote this in response to the prompt "lazy" at a "just for fun" ficathon on livejournal. But I kind of failed on the "little to no angst" rule. There is fluffiness, it's just very rare when I write something completely fluffy. Even my fluffiest of fics have some sort of conflict in them. I just can't help it. No real spoilers, but if you know how series one ends you should catch the reference to the last episode.

And a thousand thanks to my awesome beta corusca! This fic wouldn't be quite so awesome without her help.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything your recognize.

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Rose Tyler cracked a bleary eye open; simultaneously cursing and thanking the Tardis for not having windows. She thanked it because she'd rather not wake to the sight of the Time Vortex outside her bedroom; she cursed it because, as hard as she tried to convince herself that time was irrelevant here, her body insisted on sticking to a somewhat regular sleep schedule.

And she could feel from her limbs, still heavy with sleep, that she had slept in very, very late.

Rose closed her eyes and rolled over; promising herself only five more minutes before waking and facing the Doctor with this lectures on the human body's inability to go long enough without sleep. Followed by his condescending smirk when she would snap at him until she had coffee...or tea. Preferably both. As she drifted back to sleep she decided to declare today an official Lazy Day.

She dreamed she was running, running as fast as her feet would carry her from the dark shadow chasing close behind. She caught a glimpse of the Doctor just before he rounded the corner, but no matter how fast she ran she couldn't catch up with him.

Until she ran straight into his leather-clad back. He peered around his tall lean frame and gasped as they stood before a fleet of thousands-no, millions-of Daleks. They all cried their only order ('Exterminate!') and it filled the white corridor, nearly drowning out the Doctor's voice as he urged her to run.

He pushed her into a corridor that hadn't been there a moment ago; she knew he was telling her to go to safety, but she wouldn't leave him. She couldn't leave him.

She turned in the other direction, hoping they could go back the way they came, but the snarling black shadow was almost on top of them. She tried to pull the Doctor away from the Daleks and the shadow, and begged him to run with her.

He stood his ground and with a terrible sound his mortal metal enemies opened fire. Rose screamed as his body fell; she leapt forward to catch him but the Daleks continued to shoot at his lifeless form, forcing her to jump away from line of fire.

The great shadow growled her name and she ran, but the echoes followed her and she could feel the cold edges as he threatened to engulf her. It shouted her name and filled her mind until she was screaming and crying in pain.

"Rose!"

With a gasp she sat straight up and fell forward into the Doctor's arms.

"You were screaming," he muttered into her hair. "I couldn't wake you."

Rose couldn't answer, her throat felt too tight from her screams and from the silent tears streaming down her cold cheeks. He pulled away slightly and forced her watery brown eyes to meet his intense blue ones. He pulled a handkerchief from the depths of his jacket and wiped her eyes, cheeks and nose. It should have made her feel young and childish, but Rose just felt loved.

The Doctor would keep her safe and she would never leave him, not willingly; at least that part of her dream was true. She shuddered at the thought of the nightmare even as the horror of it started to fade away.

He pulled her closer so they sat side by side; their backs against the walls, and their feet dangling (his more than hers) off the side of her bed. She rested her head on his shoulder and swallowed a few times to loosen her still slightly aching throat.

"I had a nightmare," she said finally.

"I gathered that much," he said lightly. "Can you remember it?" For a moment she considered telling him the truth, that she could still recall the morbidly graceful arc of his body as it fell to the ground...but he had already suffered so many sorrows. She wouldn't add a cryptic nightmare that probably meant nothing to that burden.

"No," she whispered, unable to meet his eyes. "Nothing." Just like bad wolf means nothing, a voice hissed accusingly.

"What were you doing asleep anyway? You're usually up after five or six hours."

Rose smiled at the thought of a pleasant subject. "Sometimes, when I had a day off and Mum didn't have any customers, we would have a Tyler Family Lazy Day. She would let me sleep in as late as I wanted, make me a huge breakfast and then we'd spend the day watching old movies in our pyjamas." Her smile grew wistful at the memories. "When I woke up today I decided it felt like a lazy day, so I went back to sleep."

The confession hung in the air as the Doctor stayed silent; nothing but the comforting hum of the Tardis between them. Rose began to drift when suddenly he moved, causing her to sit up.

"Well then, Rose Tyler, prepare yourself for the best breakfast in the history, and future, of all the Tyler Family Lazy Days." That manic gin that always made her giggle jumped onto his face.

"Do you even know how to cook human food? I've never seen you step in that kitchen except when I make tea."

The Doctor turned toward her as he reached the doorway, looking a bit affronted. "'Course I can!" He exclaimed. "At the very least I've had enough of Jackie's cooking to know what it's not supposed to taste like." He grinned at her once more before heading toward the kitchen.

Rose settled back properly into her bed, drawing her fluffy comforter up to her chin, content to listen to the Tardis while she waited for the Doctor to return.

A noise jumped out at her, something not a part of the ship's steady thrum and sounding uncomfortably like the growl of the black shadow in her nightmare. She sat up once more, her entire body tense, waiting for it to creep into her bedroom and swallow her up.

After several moments of waiting, and hearing nothing out of the ordinary, she leaned back into her pillows. The Doctor's giddy mood had taken her mind from the dream and she had almost forgotten it completely.

Almost.

Now as she waited for her heart's pace to return to its normal slow beat, she knew she would never forget it.

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End file.
